Matters are getting more complex by the day in the ongoing antitrust and licensing fight between QUALCOMM, Inc (NASDAQ:QCOM) and Apple In (NASDAQ:AAPL). Some people familiar with the matter have outlined that this time around it is Qualcomm on the receiving end.
Four contractors that are widely known as the top manufacturers of Apple products and iPhones share similar sentiments. All of them believe Qualcomm has violated the two sections of the U.S. Sherman Antitrust Act. They are Wistron, Foxconn parent Hon Hai Precision Industry, Pegatron and Compal Electronics.
The four forwarded their claims in a recent filing at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. According to some reliable sources, these contractors have affirmed that indeed Qualcomm violated the Sherman Act at that particular time it proceeded to sue them. They outlined that the provider did this in May with the goal of getting them to pay license fees to it according to Siliconbeat.
Some people familiar with the matter have disclosed something important. They outlined that Apple had proceeded to give direction to the contractors to withhold their payments while suit between it and Qualcomm took the center stage. Apple seems much more determined to put up the fight. Recently, it went ahead to sue Qualcomm on grounds that it had withheld payment of about $1 billion in rebates.
One analyst that has been following on the matter closely said, “Everything in the dispute links back to the modem-chip technology that Qualcomm makes, and which iPhones use to connect to cellular data networks. Qualcomm’s method of tying the sales of such chips to patent licenses has come under investigation by regulators in many countries, including the United States and South Korea.”
Seems like quite a rough road for the top providers. One of the top executives working with Qualcomm said that the ongoing controversy is something that will soon pass. After that they will go back to their daily activities.